[7] Earlier, it had been owned by the Ramnad Kingdom of Ramanathapuram Rameshwaram which later came under the Madras Presidency during British rule of the Indian subcontinent.

[8][9] Historical evidence suggests that Kachchativu Island has been under the jurisdiction of Sri Lanka since the era of the Portuguese, Dutch, and British.

From the 17th century onwards, the island was part of the Ramnad Kingdom which existed in Madurai (Madura) district or region of India.

[18] The court ruled in the Berubari case that the cession of Indian territory to another country had to be ratified by parliament through amendment of the Constitution.

The Indian government in February 2014 stated, "No territory belonging to India was ceded nor sovereignty relinquished since the area was in dispute and had never been demarcated."

[4] A motion of the Katchatheevu dispute was reopened by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the general elections in India, which are set to start on April 19, 2024.

The BJP brought this issue to the forefront as part of its election campaign, particularly targeting the discontent of Indian fishermen affected by the 1976 agreement that barred them from fishing in the waters around the island.

Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister, Ali Sabry, has publicly dismissed the motion of reopening discussions about Katchatheevu, stating the issue was resolved 50 years ago.